Jacksonville, Fla. step group running toward Lincoln TunnelA group of stepper from Jacksonville, Fla., Ladies of Envy, make a run for it on the New Jersey side of the Lincoln Tunnel. They had driven from Florida and were late for an appearance on the BET television show "106 and Park." They were stopped by Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police officers in the tunnel.

A group of steppers from Florida were running late Wednesday night for their shot at the big time - an appearance on BET's "106 & Park."

But after 15 hours on the road and just two miles from the 57th Street studios of the popular TV show, the troupe hit gridlock at the mouth of the Lincoln Tunnel in Weehawken.

Undaunted, the steppers - five young women and three young men - decided to leave two adults behind with two vehicles and hoof it through the tunnel, in their costumes - which just happened to be camouflage.

Needless to say, Port Authority police in real uniforms and carrying real guns cut short the routine and a group of wide-eyed out-of-towners spent the next few hours scared out their wits and trying to explain what in the world they were thinking.

"I was boo-hoo crying," Eternity Odom, 16, a member of the Jacksonville step group Ladies of Envy, said yesterday about the harrowing experience.

Eternity, who also runs track, said from Virginia, en route back to Jacksonville, that she and two others were part of the first group of steppers who dashed past the toll plaza and into the tunnel, clueless that they were breaking any rules.

By the time the cops caught up with her, she could see the lights of Manhattan, she said. The cops forced her to her knees and drew guns on the second group, she said.

"I knew we were in trouble," Eternity said.

Terrell James, 24, the choreographer for the group and one of the adults on the trip, said yesterday he had no idea there was a problem with running through the Lincoln Tunnel.

"I am from Florida. We don't have tunnels," James said. "Apparently we couldn't do that."

The incident shut down the tunnel from about 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The group, who never visited New York before, wound up the missing their TV appearance.

Ron Marsico, a spokesman for the Port Authority, would only say about the incident: "Safety and security is our top priority, our police handled this matter quickly and effectively."

No charges were filed against the steppers.

Eternity said she studied 9/11 in school and in retrospect can understand why a group dashing through the tunnel draped in camouflage would draw attention.

The group, first-time visitors to the area, never made it into Manhattan. They slept at a hotel in Piscataway and started heading back home yesterday morning.

But Eternity said she's going to return to see the sights, without the combat attire.